From 6–9 January 2016, Tony Young, Steve Walsh and Alina Schartner took part in a Researcher Links workshop on the Internationalisation of Higher Education in Bangkok, Thailand. Funded by the Newton Fund, the British Council, and the Thailand Research Fund, the workshop was jointly coordinated by Newcastle University and Kasetsart University. It brought together a multidisciplinary group of 30 early-career researchers from the UK and Thailand to address the challenge of promoting values-based, intercultural internationalisation.
The workshop featured posters/oral presentations by participants, round-table discussions, and a series of keynotes from leading researchers, including Professor Sue Robson from Newcastle University, and Associate Professor Dr Mangkorn Rodprapakorn, Dr Navaporn Snodin and Dr Parichart Phootirat from Kasetsart University.
Steve Walsh led a session on educational research methods, and Tony Young gave a keynote entitled ‘Current approaches to research in higher education and cross-cultural communication’. For the participating early-career researchers the workshop offered a unique opportunity for networking and for sharing research expertise. Over the four days, Alina Schartner worked closely with Thai colleagues to develop a research project around ‘Englishization’ in higher education. She is aiming to apply to the British Council for research funding.
The workshop was the culmination of a number of collaborations between Newcastle and Kasetsart Universities, and both institutions are hoping to strengthen their partnership by applying to the Newton Institutional Links scheme in due course.
Apart from developing their research links, the ALC team was able to enjoy Thai hospitality epitomised by the outstanding workshop catering!